ICSBP Conference Proceedings International Conference on Social Science and Biodiversity of Papua and Papua New Guinea (2015), Volume 2016 Conference Paper Responses of Indigenous Peoples Against The Local Economic Empowerment in Biak Numfor Regency Hariman Dahrif and Akbar Silo 1Faculty of Aquaculture, University of Yapis Papua, Indonesia 1Graduate School, Cenderawasih University, Jayapura, Indonesia Abstract This research aims to understand and explain responses of indigenous peoples, as well as to identify and understand their socio-economic condition in the local economic empowerment program carried out in Biak Numfor Regency. Research analysis was done through phenomenology paradigm, qualitative approach, with inductive-deductive mindset, or inductive abstraction that point to specific to general. Data analysis is done through Spraedly analysis covering domain themes abstracted from the field, componential analysis and cultural theme on technical triangulation. The results demonstrate that indigenous people’s responses to the implementation of local economic empowerment at research locations vary from those who are accepting and those of rejecting. But due to the strong role of the organizer (actor) Corresponding Author: Akbar Silo; email: as well as the rigid technical guidelines in the program implementation, the coercion [email protected] occurs in its implementation, which finally makes indigenous peoples using “the mechanism of defeating self as well as symbol of resistance” and become powerless. Received: 16 July 2016 Accepted: 14 August 2016 Keywords: mechanism of defeating self, powerlessness, social-economic Published: 25 August 2016 Publishing services 1. Introduction provided by Knowledge E To overcome poverty, the government increasingly depends on social-economic Hariman Dahrif and empowerment programs in the local level. Biak Numfor is no exception. Some pro- Akbar Silo. This article is distributed under the grams of economic empowerment have been conducted in Biak, among others, (1) terms of the Creative PNPM Mandiri-RESPEK, (2) Enterprises Program “Mina Aquaculture and Capture”, (3) Commons Attribution Food Agribusiness and Agriculture Improvement (PUAP) program, (4) Business Group License, which permits (KUBE).According to some indicators, the programs have contributed to the increase unrestricted use and in social welfare. The indication shows a higher per capita income of 4470 rupiah in redistribution provided 2001 (at the beginning the special autonomy status) to 8070 rupiah in 2011. The Human that the original author Development Index (HDI) is improved from 66.00 in 1999 to 70.33 in 2011 and is ranked and source are credited. third among major districts / cities in the province of Papua. The data also indicates Selection and Peer-review that the absolute poverty decreased significantly, from 30.61% in 2005 then to 36.51% under the responsibility of in 2009 but 29.84% in 2012 (BPS of Papua Province, 2001-2011). However, even if the the ICSBP Conference absolute of poverty can be reduced but the opposite phenomenon occurs, namely the Committee. increasing gap or inequality that increases significantly from 0.1819 in 2008 to 0.4576 in 2012. According to the World Bank Institute, Biak Numfor demonstrates one of the highest inequality indexes among regencies and cities in Papua Province. How to cite this article: Hariman Dahrif and Akbar Silo, “Responses of Indigenous Peoples Against The Local Economic Page 136 Empowerment in Biak Numfor Regency,” KnE Social Sciences, vol. 2016, pages 136–145. DOI 10.18502/kss.v1i1.445 ICSBP Conference Proceedings Although given various local economic empowerment programs, Biak Numfor demonstrates that the living conditions of people in the regency is still marked by the development’s imbalance, particularly in term of income. It also means that the amount of money given through the local economic development programs hasn’t been able to stimulate the productivity, self-help and self-reliance of society as a whole. The programs haven’t created or increase equitable welfare, instead the opposite happens, namely the increasing inequality that affects the degradation in their socio-economic life. This phenomenon certainly raises a critical response from various members of Biak society and other stakeholders. There is an imperative to address and evaluate a number of problems concerning the financing and framework of the program. We use the term ‘response’ to refer to the answer or response given by individuals to the stimulus (stimulus) received in the social environment (Syaifuddin, 2007). Here, the social environment points to a program of local economic empowerment that is implementing in Biak Numfor at the present moment. Thus, the response that will be studied in this research are perceptions and experiences of indigenous peoples of Biak to firstly, the role of the executors and secondly, to the implementation of any local economic empowerment program itself, from its onset, implementation and supervision. Suwardi (1982) has applied research on community acceptance of an agriculture intensification program in West Java in the 1980s. This study attempts to examine the impacts of the green revolution on the socio-economic status of Java. The study con- cludes that ecological relationships such as ownership of leased land and low income is not an economic problem caused by overcrowding and the limited area of arable land but a social problem that has not solved yet. The study indicates that open commu- nications in the implementation of the program have positive impacts to the farmers, particularly on their attitude of supporting the use of modern technology and other modernization efforts. Simanjuntak (2003) examines the response of community of Sanggau, West Kalimantan, on the development of community forestry. His goal of study is to determine public responses to institutional changes. The result is positive as shown by the public’s acceptance of some mapping activities conducted by the com- pany. The mentioned programs certainly have meet people’s needs. However, people have a negative response to the institutionalization of land use if the ownership has not changed. Institutional forest development projects in general received a negative response because the mechanism and rules are too complicated reforestation, which results in the low rate of community adoption to the program. Through the description of previous researches that have ever been done, the researchers attempt to observe processes that take place in the indigenous community and implications arising from their acceptance of the programs of local economic empowerment that have been carried out so far. The formulation of the problem statement in this research is: how do indigenous peoples respond to the local eco- nomic empowerment projects? What is the role of various actors in the program? This research aims to explain and understand the responses of indigenous peoples DOI 10.18502/kss.v1i1.445 Page 137 ICSBP Conference Proceedings with respect to the implementation and implementers (actors) of local economic development programs in the District Biak Numfor. 2. Methods This study focuses on the desire to understand the local community’s responses to the economic empowerment programs in the local government level. To understand the organization of the public response we are required to understand the process and the changes that they experience. The study also describes the role of actors in organizing activities within the program. Yet the research’s main purpose is to reveal the response of the local community as a target goal (beneficiary group) at the location of activities. Secular and Blake (1990) suggests that research on response or perception is better done using a qualitative approach. The reason is that the excavation of in-depth infor- mation about the response or perception of a person or group can be achieved if there is more frequent contact between researchers with the object studied. This study will be conducted in the locations of local economic empowerment pro- grams that include five districts in Biak Numfor regency, namely: (1) Biak City, (2) East Biak, (3) Oridek, (4) Aimando, and (5) Padaido. The object of local economic empowerment programs that is immediate and tangible for the local community is the granting of aid money (fresh money) to community groups. Data analyses for this research take place since the early phase of the fieldwork, during the data collecting and after the fieldwork. Activities on the ground are grouped in terms of abstracting phenomena. Final analyses are conducted through Spradely method, suing data that is abstracted from the field, componential analyses and for- mulating cultural themes. 3. Literature Review 3.1. Theoretical responses In social psychology a response is usually used to study the attitudes and behavior of human beings. People’s behavior is a result of an interaction of individuals with the environment in which there is communication of ideas and negotiation process. According to Parson (quoted in Wertheim 1999), a person’s behavior is a response to respond to a real situation encountered and is the result of the working of the values that exist in society. Discussions of responses are often associated with the theory of social psychology; especially in the consistency that reveals their status to change (Strasser and Randall, 1981). For Max Weber, a status is an expression of a lifestyle or consumption patterns. However, the status is also affected